Winds of Change
After months of thinking and discussing how things would go, some things have gone off according to plan, while some others have suprised us. Here is a list of a few developing storylines as camp progresses. The sage Allen Iverson would remind us, “we in here talking about practice.”
Shaun Ellis' Readjustment – Randy Lange notes that Shaun Ellis isn't particularly fond of the 3-4 (which linemen who have played well in the 4-3 would) but sees the vision that Mangini is trying to put in place with the Jets and is excited about it. Says Ellis about the new regime “It's not a knock on Herm or anything. He was a great coach. I miss Herm. But I'm really excited about what's going on around here, too.” Mangini also had some kind words for Ellis “Shaun has taken on a leadership role. He's done some really good things in terms of working with the young guys, trying to help them get adjusted. That's been a positive.”
Jerricho Cotchery moving to the #2? – Once McCareins was put on the PUP, Cotchery's emergence was clearly a possible development. It appears though that this has been in the works for a while as Cotchery's efforts were noticed during the offseason by Mangini and the team. For as much talking about as Herm did about Cotchery over the past few seasons, the guy rarely saw the ball. It does take time for Wide Receivers to develop into solid contributors at the NFL level, and maybe now Cotchery is due.
P.R. Department in full spin on Leon Washington – Don't take that as a negative, but if one of your star players wasn't even able to practice and you are the media department for that organization, wouldn't you want to reassure your customers that everything is going to be alright? Granted, if Mangini is saying that he likes Washington's ability to pick up rushers, that's a VERY GOOD sign. Anyone remember J.J. Arrington last year? There was a ton of hype around him, but he couldn't pick up rushers effectively, and so he spent most of the season on the bench. One of the most important things for running backs to do that they rarely get credit for is to pick up the rush on passing downs. Jamal Lewis is a great example, why do you think he spends many a third down on the bench?
Kerry Rhodes still plugging along – Apparently, Kerry Rhodes has 3 picks in three days. Now in his second year, it will be interesting to see how he develops.
More physical, more real tackles – Mangini has stated that he wants this team to be more physical or else. Good! As fun as it is to see missed tackles and pushing players out of bounds, I think I would rather see defensive players get their arms around a guy and drop him. That being said, why do you think that Vilma had so many tackles last season? Could part of it be because he was one of the few guys out there who did it right?
Kellen Clemens stock settling – Remember when I said that Dave Hutchinson was the only one writing about how Kellen Clemens should be the starter in September, and I thought he was jumping the gun a bit? Well, it looks like Clemens has struggled some in the past few days while Ramsey and Pennington are settling in.
Chad NOT being on the PUP – Although McCariens, Reed and Martin have dealt with the PUP list, Chad didn't. To me, it's a painfully obvious story that I haven't seen anyone mention. The fact that a player like Martin was put on the PUP and Chad wasn't should be a sign as to his level of recovery. More than that, I don't know that it means much.
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I'm curious how far and hard Mangini is willing to push.
Apparently there have been no skirmishes, which is unheard of in this kind of heat and with the length and intensity of practice. That's a good thing… for now… as it means they're getting the message.
Did anyone else see Mangini's quote on what would happen if a player refused to run an assigned lap? Something to the effect of “lets hope you (the media) doesn't have to find out.”
I wonder how long the players can keep a cool head, though. I'm looking for a few outbursts today.
The Cotchery thing can be nothing but good news. Man do we need some offensive players to emerge to have a moderately successful year.
I'm still a skeptic when it comes to Pennington. I'm rooting for the guy to make a comeback, but no one has ever returned from 2 shoulder surgeries. Penny didn't throw with zip before his injuries; imagine how soft his throw is now.
I too am intrigued about how far Mangini can push this type of motivation in practice. Does anyone have an idea of how common things like running laps are in NFL camps nowadays?
Cimini referred to these tactics as a bit “high schoolish,” and I can't imagine a team like the Giants, for example, with a stable of stars being motivated by this type of camp.
If Mangini can make it work, great. But I wonder how long the team will respond to this.
Which is why it was so mind-blowingly ESSENTIAL that the types of guys they brought in were the types of guys that would respond well to this sort of thing and that they got rid of all the guys who wouldn't.
Mawae? Goodbye. Sowell? So long. Abe? Later, babe.
Of course they couldn't completely get rid of ALL the questionable attitude guys for financial reasons and for the sheer fact that they would have no talent left.
So…who is not 100% on board? Miller? Coles? Barton? (just random speculation based on reports I have heard or what we know about these guys).
It is certainly going to be more difficult for any malcontents to speak up if a high percentage of the guys out there are behind this way of doing things. Whether this is the case remains to be seen, but no scuffles so far (actually I did hear of one) is a good sign. It's clear this was what they were striving for.
This might work or it might blow up in everybody's faces but they have done everything they can to set their stall.